Jitter Bug
by The.Dragon.Singer
Summary: The humans are just like us; smaller, fleshy, and squishier, but like us. This was their planet and it's not our fault, nor theirs, that the Allspark landed on Earth. We are just as new and strange to them as they are to us; respect them and their differences. And whatever you do, DON'T SQUISH A HUMAN!
1. Chapter 1

Chromia shifted awkwardly before the door to Elita-One's office. The blue femme grumbled, narrowing optics at the door.

_Why_ had the femme leader had summoned her _here_? This was last place she expect to find Elita.

Sure, the pink femme loved sparklings, but after a battle against the newly formed Decepticons, Elita was unable to produce a sparkling, and seeing the younglings with now caretakers usually made the pink Autobot sad.

Chromia shifted again, leaning against the wall and staring at the door that was facing her.

It finally slid open, and Chromia straightened.

Elita-One smiled at her Second-in-Command. Chromia lifted an optic ridge, gazing at the large yellow blob that was attached to Elita's torso.

"What is that?" The blue femme asked.

"This is Bumblebee," Elita held out the youngling, who cooed and waved his arms at Chromia. "Your youngling."

"My..._youngling?" _

"Surely you know what a youngling is, Chromia."

"What-?"

"A youngling is the upgraded form of a sparkling, which are produced from two sparkmates or the Allspark. Little Bumblebee here was made by the Allspark before it was jetisoned into space."

"Elita, I can't take care of a youngling!" Chromia protested as the yellow youngling launched himself at her, tiny door-wings quivering. The blue femme barely caught Bumblebee before he hit the floor.

Bumblebee cooed, playing with one of the horns on the side of her helm as Chromia lifted him.

"Mia!"

"Well, I suppose he can't be that bad." Chromia tickled his back with one of her digits.

Elita smirked.

* * *

"Oi, Prime!"

Optimus paused the movements of his fingers, causing a grumpy huff to come from the youngling lying on the desk.

"You may enter, Ironhide." The Prime smirked, tickling the tiny blue bot's door-wings as she cooed.

"About-," Ironhide's optics zeroed in on the sparkling, who's pedes and servos were waving as she smiled. "Is that a youngling!?"

"Yes. Her name is Silverbug," Optimus held her out, and smiled. "She would like to meet her Guardian."

"Hi, there Silvebug." Ironhide scooped the femmling up into her large arms, being mindful of his cannons. "Who's your Guardian?"

Silverbug glanced at Optimus, who nodded with a slight smile.

"I'o-hide!" She threw her arms up and grabbed the cannon on one of his arms. "Boom tube?"

"Cannon." Ironhide corrected, practically cooing. "Optimus, are you making a Guardian again?"

"I am." The Autobot Commander nodded. "I found little Silverbug in a Sparkling Center, though she was too old to be there. I thought that you would make a wonderful Guardian. Everyone knows how well you and Chromia did with Prowl."

"So, I can keep her?" Ironhide looked like a sparkling on his extraction-day.

"I'o-hide mine." Silverbug stated, staring up with tired blue optics. She tapped her chest. "Bug's."

* * *

Ironhide stepped into the housing unit he shared with Chromia, a sleeping Silverbug in his carrying hold. He was quiet, feeling along the bond he had to find the blue femme in the washracks, bent over a small tub in the ground.

"Chromia, what're you doing?"

"Ironhide!"

There was silence for several kilks, and then both the Autobots spoke up.

"I need to tell you something. No, you first. Alright. I have a youngling."

"Mia! Who big mech?"

An answering chirp came from within Ironhide's carrying hold and he slid it open to place Silverbug on the floor near the tub where Chromia's yellow mechling was splashing.

"Hello. I'm-"

"I'o-hide!" Silverbug pointed to Ironhide, interupting his interaction with the yellow youngling. "Me Bug! Who you?"

"Me Bee! Mia!" Bumblebee pointed to Chromia who cooed and touched the tiny antenna on his head.

"So, two younglings, huh?"

Silverbug began chriping at Bumblebee, and she crawled into the pool with him. Splashing his arms.

The yellow mechling splashed back with a laugh.

* * *

Chromia leaned against Ironhide, watching their two door-wingers cuddle while they recharged.

"I have a feeling that this is going to be fun."

"Should we have a party?" Ironhide laughed. "Invite Jazz and Prowl, maybe Optimus and Elita."

"Speaking of Elita, she was the one who gave me Bee. How'd you get Silverbug?"

"Optimus."

"I bet they conspired." Chromia shook her head. Ironhide laughed, pulling her to their berthroom.


	2. Chapter 2

"Bee!"

The little mechling, who was very near his upgrade to a young bot, looked around trying to spot his sister. Bumblebee frowned, searching with the bond they had.

**/Over here/**

Bumblebee's optics locked onto one of Ironhide's larger cannons. The two mischievous little bots were exploring the weapons room while Chromia had a nap.

Silverbug's helm poked out, grinning. Her delicate doorwings were pressed against her back, and her optics were bright.

"It warm. Try that one." She nodded to the cannon next to it. Bee nodded, and crawled in.

Only his plan didn't exactly work. He was in, that was true, but he was in the _wrong way._

Silverbug sent a wave of laughter over their sibling bond, to which the yellow mech replied with a grumble of annoyance.

She went quiet when the door slid open and the heavy footsteps of their mech Guardian were heard. Both the younglings nearly squealed as the cannons were lifted, and heated more.

That was why Silverbug had originally climbed into the cannon; it was deliciously warm, like the sun. But she couldn't get outside, and the cannon was the next best thing.

It just so happened that Bee liked to do what she did too, usually with less successful results.

"Fraggin' cannon, I hope you work." Ironhide told the Bumblebee-cannon.

**/I'o-hide said a bad word/**

**/Mia needs to put 'Hide in time-out/**

**/Uh-huh/**

Ironhide continued to grumbled and the two younglings nearly squealed when the cannons swung upwards. The loud whine of the weapons charging up filled their audio receptors.

**/Uh-oh/**

Silverbug braced herself against the edges of the cannon, keeping her doorwings tucked tight to her body. A shot went off, and Bee squealed, prompting Silver to stick her head out of the cannon in time to watch him splat against the target.

**/Funny~! Bee went SPLAT!/**

"Ironhide, have you seen the young-" Chromia began as she stuck her helm into the training room. "Ironhide."

"THIS ISN'T WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE! I SWEAR!"

"'Hide meanie." Bee gasped dramatically.

"I'VE BEEN FRAMED!"

"I'o-hide say bad word too! He need timeout."

Chromia growled. "Ironhide..."

"Now, Chromia." Ironhide pulled the cannon containing Silverbug closer. "Let's think logically here. I have Silverbug, and if you shoot me there's a good chance that you'll hit her. We don't injure out younglings, _right_?"

The black mech edged towards the door as Chromia stalked towards her little mech.

**/I'o-hide run. Mia mad/**

Ironhide bolted, tucking Silverbug into his carrying hold as he transformed down into his four-wheeled alternate mode.

* * *

Jazz shuttered his optics as he looked up at Ironhide, who stood on his front step glancing over his shoulder every twenty kilks.

"Can Ah help ya, 'Hide?"

"Yes! Chromia is after me! You've gotta hide me!" Ironhide pleaded.

"Sure. Come on in." The small silver mech stepped aside and let his friend into his housing unit. "Why is she after ya?"

"The younglings framed me. They crawled into my cannons and I didn't notice." Ironhide grumbled, opening his chassis with a wince. He slid open his carrying hold and pulled out a growling Silverbug, who immediately began kicking her Guardian.

"Bug no like in there! Too small! I'o-hide meanie! Where here!? Here inter...esting. Who you?" The tiny blue femme directed her attention to Jazz, who was snickering.

"Ah'm Jazz."

"Bug like Jazz!"

"You're so cute!" Jazz cooed, looking at the youngling, who preened. Ironhide stiffened, handing Silverbug over to Jazz as he dove into a secret compartment in the ground.

"Watch her for me!"

"Ah have some puzzles. Wanna do one?" Silverbug looked confused.

"What puzzle?"

"Ah'll show ya."

* * *

Chromia's optics narrowed as she observed the small housing unit, Jazz's relaxed figure, and the lack of Ironhide.

"Where is he?"

"Mia!" Silverbug's helm popped up over the cylindrical puzzle she and Jazz were playing with. "Hi Mia! I'o-hide go bye-bye!"

"He's not here?" The femme looked over at the Autobot TiC, who shrugged.

"Naw. Dropped off Little Bug, and made a break for it. Dunno where to. Said something about younglings though. And Ah have one..."

"This," Chromia pulled a dozy Bumblebee out of her own carrying hold. "Is Bumblebee."

"Can Ah hold 'im?"

"You can watch him while I find Ironhide to...put him in a _time out._"

The femme transferred Bumblebee over to Jazz.

"Bye-bye, Mia." Bee waved and promptly fell asleep against Jazz.

"Let's have some fun."

* * *

Jazz grinned down at the little younglings curled on his couch, sipping a cube of Energon.

**::Ironhide to Jazz. You can bring the younglings back now:: -Ironhide**

**::Aw. But I wanna keep them! They're so cute.:: -Jazz**

**::Jazz, you can visit.:: -Chromia**

**::How did the _time out_ go?:: -Jazz**

**::Very well.:: -Ironhide.**He sounded smug.

**::I'd like the younglings back. Ratchet is visiting later.:: -Chromia**

**::All the more reason ta keep 'em.:: -Jazz**

**::Don't make me get Optimus and Elita in on this!:: -Chromia**

**::All right. All right. Jazz out.:: -Jazz**

"Come on, Little Bug." Jazz tickled her doorwings, causing a purr to rise from the younglings vocal processors. "Time to go see Mia and Hide."

"Mia...not mad with I'o-hide anymore?" She murmured, slowly onlining her optics.

"Nope. Hide had a timeout. Let's get Bumblebee up."

Silverbug rocked onto her hands and knees, puttering over to her brother.

**/Bee up. Mia and Hide/**

**/Sleepy/**

**/Don't care. Up/**

**/Pout/**

Bumblebee grumbled as he sat up, shuttering his optics and venting heavily.

"Don' act like that, Bee!" Jazz pouted back. "Ah'll come an' visit."

The saboteur gathered the little Autobots into his arms.


	3. Chapter 3

Silverbug hummed as she followed Ironhide down the street, ducking behind another bot when he glanced back.

Ironhide knew full well that Silverbug was following him, but he played along. The blue femme was grinning as she followed him to his meeting. She would probably end up sitting beside him and playing with a puzzle.

These meetings didn't go anywhere, so Ironhide usually ended up doing the puzzle with his newly-upgraded adolescent femme. Bumblebee was currently with Chromia, in the city of Praxus, visiting Prowl.

Silverbug tiptoed over to Ironhide's leg as he stopped to make it look like he was admiring something in a shop.

She let out a battle cry and launched herself at his leg, and landed on it with a thump.

"Hello, Bug."

"Aw, you knew!?" She pouted, stepping off his leg. Ironhide chuckled, tapping his chassis with a finger.

"Darn. Hey, is Jazz gonna be at the meeting!?" She grinned up at her Guardian.

"Yes. He is Optimus Prime's Third in Command."

"Good. He owes me a new puzzle."

"I swear that mech is trying to spoil you."

"I'm okay with that! Let's go! I wanna see Optimus Prime again. He's really big!"

Ironhide shook his head.

* * *

Silverbug preened as she sat in her car, placing cannon pieces into their correct spots. Optimus had stopped talking to watch her and Silverbug liked to be the center of attention.

"As I was saying, I believe we should postpone this meeting to play with Silverbug."

"Ain't this important?" Jazz smirked, already moving to help Silverbug with her puzzle.

"It is not top priority." Optimus knelt beside the adolescent. "Silverbug, may I teach you a new game?"

"New game?" Silverbug diverted her attention from the nearly complete cannon toy. Optimus nodded, subspacing a small metal box, which folded out into a popular game.

Silverbug watched in interest as Optimus set up the pieces.

"I remember this. It was one of Prowl's favourites."

"How is Prowl?"

"Chromia and Bumblebee are going to visit him today."

"I see."

Silverbug vented, returning to her puzzle. Jazz knelt beside her, and he subspaced a box.

"You're new puzzle. Ah like this one too."

When Ironhide and Optimus returned their attention to the adolescent, she was finishing a spherical puzzle with Jazz.

* * *

Bumblebee peered from behind Chromia's legs at the little blue adolescent behind Prowl's leg. Bee had met Prowl once before, several orns before he'd been upgraded into his new frame, but the little blue mech he had never seen before.

"Bumblebee, go play with Bluestreak." Chromia stepped to the side and pushed him forward. Bluestreak stepped out and his door-wings drooped at an awkward angle.

"I'm Bumblebee." The yellow mech smiled and stepped towards the pile of toys in the corner. "Who're you?"

"Bluestreak."

"You don't talk much."

"No. Prowl doesn't talk much either."

"That just makes him a better listener!"

"Really?"

"Uh-huh!"

* * *

"Hi, Bee! You're back! Come play my new puzzle with me!" Silverbug tugged on Bumblebee's arm.

"You got a new puzzle?" Bee followed her to their room and the pieces flickered as they lay on the ground. "I met a new mech today."

Silverbug frowned. She didn't like to share her brother. Bumblebee was her's, and Ironhide's and Chromia's and nobody else's. Bee wasn't supposed to be shared.

But her puzzle was and that was more important.

"It's cool what is it?"

"It turns into a sphere. And then it looks like Cybertron. It's pretty neat. Jazz said he got it all the way from Vos."

"That's really far. Do you think he met a Seeker?"

"I don't know. We'll ask next time we see him. Don't you think it would be cool to fly?"

"Let's pretend!"


	4. Chapter 4

Silverbug observed the pile of mech on the floor with a scowl, door-wings quivering angrily. Her blue optics narrowed before she turned on her heel-strut and stopped towards the main room, where Prowl and her two Guardians were discussing things.

She strode straight to the corner, and subspaced on of her puzzles. Ironhide glanced at her out of the corner of his optic, as she started placing the pieces where they were supposed to go.

Prowl lifted an optic ridge, icy blue optics flickering between the large doorway she'd come from and the adolescent playing alone in the corner.

Silverbug growled, dropping the pieces in her servos and crossing her arms across her chassis with a huff, before her optics filled with Energon. Ironhide strode over and knelt beside his femmling.

"Bug, what's wrong?"

She launched herself at her Guardian, Energon streaking down her face as she quietly cried.

"Bug?"

"Bluestreak is stealing Bee!"

Prowl shared a look with Chromia, who chuckled as she shook her head.

"Stealing him?" Ironhide stroked her helm as she whimpered, nodding. "How?"

"Bee is Bug's! And Ironhide's and Mia's! Not Bluestreak's!"

Bee skipped into the room, followed by his grinning friend. The yellow mech's door wings twitched and he shuffled over to his sister. Bluestreak stayed on his heels.

"Bug?"

"What's the matter?" Bluestreak leaned forward, concerned about the femmling.

"Go away."

"Silverbug..."

"Lemme go, Ironhide. Please." The femme wiggled out of her Guardian's arms and trotted out of the room.

"Prowl?" Bluestreak looked at his own Guardian. "What's wrong with Silverbug?"

It was Chromia who answered the poor blue mechling's question.

"Silverbug is very possessive over what's her's. She always has been, Bluestreak. Bumblebee is hers, and I'm her's, and so is Ironhide."

"Then I'll be her's too!"

* * *

Silverbug burrowed beneath the covers of her Opi and Danni's berth, curling into a ball of blue and silver. Mercury rain drummed against the window, highlighted by flashes of forked energy.

Prowl had come to visit again. He and Bluestreak had been doing that a lot. She didn't mind Prowl, but she really didn't like Bluestreak.

He'd been nice to her for a long time, nearly an entire vorn. But then Bumblebee had begun not letting her play with them, and Bumblebee was the only friend she had. Bluestreak didn't so much as look at her now, and Bumblebee only ever talked to her while they were drinking their Energon.

Silverbug was down-right done with it all. She was fed up of being ignored by her only friend and brother. And she hated it.

"Silverbug, are you done hiding?" Ironhide asked from the doorway. Silverbug poked her head out and nodded, shuffling over so her opi could sit with her. "Why are you hiding again?"

The blue and silver femme flinched as the energy cracked again. Ironhide nodded, pulling her close.

"It can't hurt you."

"It's still loud and scary." She argued.

"That's true. Why were you hiding this time, Bug?" The large black mech pulled her into his lap and leaned against the wall.

"Bee and Bluestreak aren't letting me play with them again." She muttered, door-wings drooping. "'Hide? Can I go the Academy?"

Ironhide was quiet, facial plates drawn into a confused look. He glanced down at the quiet femme in his arms, and sighed.

"Why?"

"Because maybe I can make some friends. And then I don't have to hide when Bumblebee and Bluestreak won't include me. And then I can be smart and strong, like you and Mia."

"I'll talk to Chromia about it." He assured, rubbing between the femme's door-wings. Silverbug purred, cuddling closer. She barely noticed as her opi lifted her up. She didn't notice when she was placed on her berth and covered with a soft blanket of woven metal, or when Bumblebee and Bluestreak poked their heads in.

* * *

"She wants to go wear?" Chromia stared at her sparkmate, frowning.

"The Academy."

"Why!? We can't let our femmling go there!"

"She wants to go to get away from Bee and 'Streak." Ironhide sighed, rubbing his face as he sat. "So she can make new friends. I think it might be a good idea. We'll have to send them both there soon. Bug just wants to go early."

"Ironhide, I don't want them involved in the upcoming war. I want to keep them out of it as long as we possibly can." Chromia sighed, placing a hand on her mech's shoulder.

"The Decepticons are going to start attacking large, more populated cities soon, Mia. Sending Bug to the Autobot Academy is a good idea. The soon she learns to fight, the sooner we can let her out of the housing unit."

"I just don't want to let her go."

"Neither do I, my Spark. Neither do I."

* * *

**::Ironhide to Optimus:: -Autobot Ironhide**

**::How can I help you, old friend?:: -Optimus Prime**

**::You have a spot open in your Academy for a little femme bot?:: -Autobot Ironhide**

**::A spot for Silverbug? And not young Bumblebee?:: -Optimus Prime**

**::Bug...wants to go. Bee still hasn't heard her request.:: -Autobot Ironhide**

**::There are several spots left, and a berth room opened up an orn ago. Would you like to register her?:: -Optimus Prime**

**::Yeah...:: -Autobot Ironhide**

**::You sound hesitant, my friend.:: -Optimus Prime**

**::I didn't want to involve Bug or Bee in the war for as long as possible.:: -Autobot Ironhide**

**::The documents have been sent to your housing unit console. I trust you and young Silverbug will take a look at them next solar cycle.:: -Optimus Prime**

**::Yes, sir. Until all are one.:: -Autobot Ironhide**

**::Until all are one:: -Optimus Prime**


End file.
